
;- -^^0^ 



o-«, % ••■*<'''., /V'-'^'V""^. v-^f^-v^^ %'^f^>''' \ •-^Pv^^''^^^ 



0^ "^o 













• ,.., %*--°\n*^ °<.*---'f° V'-^TT'-^^'^ ^o^ 



*3 ^l^r^'-v > 



V 









»>•*■ 

-^^H^ 













^"^ O^ " o . "^ 















<> 




^>* .v^ 

















^''\°^ ^.'^^^-^y"^ "^^o/'^^^V '\'^^-\y'^ '"•^o/^'^^'V ^ '\'^ft-\y'^ '^^o/*' 



SOUVENIR 




^^'m^'m^rmr^?;Wi-^.i- 



-^"i-* «pfvi rfWa-i A 



, .'Sfe .y.i^ fifi^ .-^ ■ 






^3::^^ 



mm 







WILLIAM BBULTON, 




Miiailihfeiliit 



SOUVENIR 



-OF TJIK- 



^Y OF :/\bPENA, 



^ 



'/- 



V,Y- 



1^ 



J 



WILIrlAM BOULTON. 



COPYHIOnTED nV WrT,l,IAM HOI'LTOX. 

LSHIi. 




/■7^i0 - 



7 



h 








4^ 



1^.^.,^% 

>lt V-.- 1 ^ 



.cUb- 



CirV OF AI;I'KNA. l-'i;().M MA^^ONIC HLOCK. 

il-'i"Mi a IMiiiiciyrapli Uy Win. l'.nnll"ii.' 



^iTv OF Alpena. 




Alpena, truly named "The Carlsbad of America," is a lively, energetic 
and magnificently located city of 15,000 inhabitants, delightfully situated on 
the shore of that famed harbor. Thunder Bay, in the northeastern part of the 
lower peninsula of Michigan. 

Thunder Bay River divides the city into two parts. This river is naviga- 
ble for vessels drawing twelve feet of water, for a distance of a mile from the 
moiith of the river, to the dam, and forms a large inner harbor, with two miles 
of wharfage. On the bay shore of the city, wharves can be cheaply built, at 
which vessels can lay safely during any storm. Alpena has the best harbor on 
the Great Lakes. It is easy of access; it is free from dangerous shoals, and the bay affords safe anchor- 
age for thousands of vessels. The situation of Alpena, as a lake poi-t, and for the purjMse of commerce, 
is not excelled by any city on the Great Inland Seas. 

The cit)' of Alpena was incorporated in 1871, at which time she had less than 3,000 inhabitants. 
Hei- territory comprises nearly -l-,000 acres, and has a frontage on the ba}^ of three miles. The mo.st of 
the land within the city limits is but a few feet above the level of the bay waters, and is free from 
marshes or swam|is. About three sections have Iteen platted into lots, most of which contain one-fifth of 



an aci'i' pacli. The lmsin(>ss [lurlinii of the c\i\ is on Ixitli sides of (he river, near the. mouth, while the 
resident poi'tion extends along the bay shore for two miles, and back from the shore over a mile. Alpena 
has over 2,000 residenies. over 100 brick business j)laces. brick and stone High School that cost $4^0,000, 
an elegant brick opera house, two fine stone churches, five brick churches, five wooden churches, brick 
court house, stone jail, brick county poor house, a fine magnetic sulphur spring bath house, oue daily 
and three weekly newspapers, tliree job printing offices, twelve lumber mills, four shingle mills, one sul- 
phite papei- pulp factory, one hemlock bark extract factory, one stave mill, one sjwol factory, two foun- 
dries and machine shops, one roller process Hour mill, four j)laning mills, one furniture factory, one mar- 
ble works, three ])hotograpli galleries, two breweries, a lai'ge stone malt house, gas works, electric light 
works. Holly water works, telephone exchange. W. U. T. line, the famous Churchill house, which is not 
excelled by any hotel in the State, railroad communication, four lines of passenger steamboats, three 
from Detroit and one from IJay City, and a full sujiply of drug stores, grocery stores, dry goods and mil- 
linery establishments, boot and shoe stores, hardware houses, merchant tailoring establishments, book 
stores, furniture dealers and undertakers, U. S. fish hatchery, weather office, steam laundries, bottling 
works, harness sho])s, carriage factories, livery stables, and many other business enterprises. 

As regards societies. Alpena has two F. and A. M. lodges. Royal Arch Masons, Koyal and Select 
MasoTis. Knights Templar. I. (). (). F. lodges, five tents of the K. O. T. M., a nund)er of hives of the L. 
(). T. .M.. the A. (). r. W., Foresters. National liiion. A. O. H.. Woodmen of tlie World. Knights of St. 
,)ohn and St. .]e;in de Ijaptiste, a |>ost of the (i. A. I!., a company of the State troojjs, and many other 
social organizations. 

The religious denominations consist of the following, all of which have churches: Episcopal. Con- 
gregational, three Catholic societies, Methodist. Presbyterian, Baptist, Norwegian and Lutheran. The 

4 



various churches are worth from five to forty thousand dollars each, and four are beautiful structures. 
The Y. M. C. A. has a parlor, gymnasium, reading room, play room, bath room, etc., and a membership 
of over 200. 

The streets of the city, with few exceptions, run at right angles, and the total length of open graded 
streets is <)3 miles. The sidewalks are built by the city and have a length of 48 miles. Tile sewers ex- 
tend all over the city, thoroughly draining the resident part, and preventing stagnant pools to breed dis- 
ease. A city as enterprising as Alpena, must have paved streets, and there are six miles of the principal 
streets paved with cedar blocks, and half a mile with crushed stone. In the business portion the streets 
are paved full width, and '24 feet wide in other places. A small portion of the sidewalks are of artificial 
stone. 

The water works supply water both for domestic and fire purposes, and are owned by a stock company, 
composed of citizens. Two set of pumps are used. The system is the Holly, and the fire pressure is 
furnished by the pumps. For fire purposes it is not surpassed by any in the State. All that is neces- 
sary is to telephone the engineer, attach the hose to a hydrant, and the water is furnished with sufficient 
power to reach the top of any building in the city. Twenty streams, of great power, can be used at one 
time. On the bay shore, in the Sixth ward, are the steam pumps for supplying water from the bay for 
domestic purposes, and at the dam are powerful rotary pumjjs, run by water power, that furnish the high 
jn-essure streams. There are 22 miles of water mains, 200 fire hydrants, two hose companies, and, in 
addition, there are two steam fire engines, but are seldom needed. The amount of water pumped during 
the year 1802, was o87,2()7,320 gallons. 

The Gas Company have four and diie-half miles of mains, and the plant is valued at $00,000. Its 
great competitor is electricity. The Electric Light Company have an extensive plant. Like the gas and 

5 



water, it is iiii Alpena cDiiioratidii. (iwned aiul oontrolloil l)y citizens. l>(itli the arc and incandescent lights 
arc used. The fon.ier is niDstiy u.sed for lighting the streets, and the latter for business places, churches 
and private residences. There are 75 arc lights used and 1,700 incandescent lamps. The Brush system 
is used for the arc lights and the Thompson-Housen for the incandi'scent. 

Banking Inisincss is attended to l)y the Alpena National Jiank and tlie ('omstock Bros', bank. The 
published statement of the national hank has sliown deposits of over $350,000, which serves to indicate 
the amount of Imsine.ss done. 

(.'ommunication between the two sides of the river is maintained l)v three bridges — a steel swing 
bridge, a steel tixed bridge and a wooden bridge. Their value is §25.000. 

The telephone exchange has wires running all over the city, and 170 telephones are in constant use. 

Two mails arrive daily by I'ail. and four letter carriers distribute tlie mail about the city. In 181)2, 
the post office receipts amounted to $'J,ti53.3S. The number of stamps sold was: One cent, 20,013; two 
cent, 201,104; postal cards, 34,r)04, and over 80,000 stamped envelopes. The money order department 
issued 501 foreign money orders; 3,207 donu'stic orders, and 1,051 jiostal notes. 

The number of ciiildren of school age in the city is 4,23;{. To accommoilate the scholars there are 
the Central school building and six waid school buildings, besides which the St. Bernard Catholic society 
have a large and beautiful stone school hous(\ The public school |)ro[)ertv is valued at §70. 500. 

During the year lS02. the passenger steamers calling at this port made 353 round trips, of which 
144 were between Bay City and Alpena, and 200 between Detroit and St. Ignace — the Detroit steamers 
calling at this port on the way up and down. 

Each season about 3.000 vessels enter and clear from thi^ port of Alpena, and the.se vessels exptu'ted 
in 1802, from this port, the following products: Lumber, 172.'.IOO.OOO feet: lath. 50,351,000; .shingles, 

6 



25,500,000; fedar posts, 481,000; railway ties, .")(;;5,()()(); tamarack pond net stakes, 1,703; cords of cedar, 
125. From this port tliere were also shipped, partly by vessel and ])artly by rail, the following: Sul- 
phite paper pulp, 7,121,445 pounds; hemlock bark extract, (J.OOO barrels; excelsior, 700 tons; fish, 700 
tons; gross of spools, 185,000; gill net floats, 100,000; huckleberries and blackberries, 2,000 bushels; 
several hundred bushels of plums and crab apples, and several hundred cords of building and lime stone. 
Alpena is a busy seaport diiring the navigation season. At times the river harbor is alive with 
great steamships, magniflcent palace steamers, majestic sailing vessels, barges and tugs, and some of the 
busiest weeks 10,000,000 feet of lumber are exported in addition to other products. 





( ri'V OF Ahl'KNA. KliO.M < ITV HALI,. 

vl Kiiii a I'liotii.^mpli l)V Will. Ituiiltmi.' 



4|IST0RKAL-. 




Alpena has no ancient history or ivy covered niiiis of former greatness. She is a 
ti modern city, and a lively and progressing one. Her remarkable rise, from the wilder- 
ness to her present proud position of metropolis of the northern portion of the lower 
peninsula of Michigan, is yet fresh in the memories of many of her present inhabitants. 
J To-day she is a living monument testifying truly to the energy, perseverance, industry 
and good government of her sons. 

Thirty years ago her lots and streets were covered with forests of pine and other woods. A few In- 
dians roamed about the tract. Thunder Bay river ran swiftly by to the bay — its waters clear and spark- 
ling, as they did not then, as they now do, have to force a passage through many miles of log jams. Fish 
in countless numbers swam about the clear waters. Solitude reigned through countless vears. 

The skirmishers of American civilization, the trapper of furs and the fur buyer arrived. He was 
closely followed by the hardy fisherman, who discovered that the waters of Thunder Bay and adjoining 
shores of Lake Huron were alive with the delicious trout and whitetish. The enterprising and energetic 
lund)e.rmen then appeared on the scene, and in 185U, began tcj lay the foundation of Alpena's prosj)erity. 
Lumber mills were erected, the woodman's axe resounded in the woods, and soon the great lumber manu- 
facturing industry was created. Houses and business places were erected. Land was platted. Streets 
were laid out. ( 'hurdles and school houses were constriicted. and in a few years a young city, full of life 
and vigor, had replaced the forests. As the inhal)itHnts increased in wealth thev Ijegan to build finer 

9 



residences. The earlier scliool houses, clmrclies and jmhlie Imiidiiigs were rejjlaceil with better, more 
coimnoilious and more l)(^a\itit'id editices. Shade trees were pLanted alon<]f the streets, that, to-day, so 
greatly heautify the j)ul)lic thoroughfares and give so grateful a shade to the jjedestrian as he strolls 
along the walks. Miles upon miles of tile drains were laid. Gardens were planted. Pretty lawns laid 
out. Then came a demaiul For |)ave(l streets. Laborers were set to work, and to-day there are nearly 
six miles of the principal streets paved with cedar blocks. Electricity reached out its hand and then Al- 
pena was bound to the rest of the world with the telegraph wire. Then came the telephone and brought 
the business community in close communion, and was closely followed by the electric light. Steamboat 
men found it was protitable business to run their palace steamers to Alpena, and the business has been 
so lucrative that four lines of steamers now run regularly to the city. But these were not sufficient to 
satisfy the people of Alpena, and in 1880 a railroad line was extended to the city. 

Alpena is a city of homes; a city of gardens; a city of churches; a city remarkable foi- its jnire and 
invigorating atmosphere, and it is fast becoming a city of beautiful maple shade trees, of pretty lawns, 
and fine residences. All these thousands of houses, hundreds of brick blocks, miles of streets and side- 
walk, churches, school houses and public buildings have been obtained in exchange for the pine, cedar, 
tish and stone, and more too, for while tliis great work lias Ixh'm done and this flourishing city erected, 
the energetic sons and daughters of Alpena ha\(> lived well, have enjoyed all the comforts of life and 
many of the luxuries, while a few have acciimulated great fortunes. It has been a good exchange, and 
Alpena jyeople have reaped a rich harvest from theii- pine forests. Hut best of all hundreds of laboring 
men own the pretty homes they dwell in, and it is the |)i-oud boast of the people of Alpena that more 
laboring men own houses and lots than can be found in any other city in proportion to the number of 
iidiabitants. .\11 these pnl)ii<- inipro\-emints liavc been made on a cash basis. The ))aved streets, extensive 

10 



tile sewerage, scIidoI huililiugs iiiid uther public edifices do iiut represent a large bunded iudebtediiess that 
the future citizens will have to pay. It is nearly all paid for. The city financial statement, made in 
April, 189B, tells the gratifying and highly commendable story. It shows the financial condition of the 
city of Alpena is not excelled by any city in the State. The only city bonds ever issued were for the 
construction of the fine steel bridge, between Second and Dock streets. Of those bontls only six thousand 
dollars remain unpaid. The floating debt caused mostly by [)aving and tile draining and the building of 
the fixed steel bridge at Ninth street, and the beautiful Central school house, amounted to $2(),<>'J'-^.0G, and 
made the entire debt of Lhe city of Alpena, March 1st, 1S!).3, amount to a little less than $33,000. To 
offset the debt there were in the city treasurer s hands nearly $10,000, besides a large amount of taxes 
uncollected. Alpena has but very little debt, while as a credit, in addition to the items above stated, she 
has school houses valued at $7U, 500; bridges worth $25,000; a public library valued at $3,000; cedar 
pavement to the amount of .$07, 000; stone pavement worth $1,300; fire department apparatus and engine 
houses valued at $1G.000; sewers worth $55,000. The total value of the city property was estimated by 
the Comptroller, in his report for the spring of 18113, at $2(<1,000. Can any city in the United States 
make a better financial showing? 

The assessed valuaticm of Alpena city, in the year 1802, was $3,923,968, and its real cash value to- 
day is at least six millions of dollars. All this great value has been created during the last 35 years. In 
additi()7i to the great wealth accumulated by the unceasing toil and industry of the sons and daughters 
of Al|)ena, they have well enjoyed the past years. They have been bountifully fed; they have been well 
entertained; the younger generations have been well educated; life has been a pleasant one in the city, 
and no one can truly say that the people of Alpena have not been ])rovident and have built a city wisely, 
beautifully and free from debt. The pioneers of Alpena have done tlieir duty, and they leave to their 
sons and daughters an inheritance of great value. 




coifNHU OF \VASHIN(rroX AVEXl'K AND FIKST Sl'KEKT. 

(rriHii a )*lin(t>;:ra|tli U\ \Vm. Itoiillon.^ 




^jPENA AS A ^lEAlrTH AND "TlxEASURE "I^SORT. 

As A ])leasure ami healtli resort, the uorthern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan 
has, (luring tlu; past few yeai'S, become noted for its excellence. Each succeeding 3ear 
brings a larger number of tourists to pass the summer months. The steamers that run 
from Detroit to Alpena and St. Ignace have not ])een able to accommodate all who desir- 
ed to make the pleasant and invigorating voj'age u[) what is termed "The Shore." Dur- 
ing the excursion season, comprising about three months of the year, those who desired to 
make a trip (m either of the fine palace steamers that called at the port of Alpena, eight 
times ever}' week, had to engage their staterooms weeks in advance, at Deti'oit. Trip 
after trip these magnificent steamers not only had every stateroom occupied, but a large number of .cots 
had to be provided to accommodate the crowd aboard. In fact, the number of people who made the 
pleasant summer voyage was dependent upon the amount that could !)(• carried by the steamers. The 
great demand for staterooms caused the enterprising Detroit S; C'leveland Steam Navigation t'o. to build, 
during the winter of lS',)2-8, two of the largest and most magnificent steel steamers on the (Ireat Lakes, 
capable of comfortably carrying twice as many passengers as the old steamers could do. The new palace 
steamers are remarkably fast imes, being able to steam 20 nnles per hour, and having every appliance for 
the safety and comfort of jiassengers. 

The citv of Al[)ena is right in the heart of this favored pleasure and health resort region, so justly 
celebrated for its jmre atiiiosphei'e. invigorating and health-giving breezes, and best of all. for summer 

13 ' 



time, its ivt'ivsliiiiji;, cool evt'iiiii^s an;; iii<^hts. H«iv the tired ami worn out business uiau can eujoj- 
a week or two of needetl rest to recuperate his wearied mind. Here the invalid can get a restful sleep 
and strengthen a weakened system. Here the tired de\'otee of society can regain the lost vigor and cast 
otf the weariness caused by months of hard and physically wearying toil, experienced by those who are 
the slaves of fashion. 

Til such .\lpena offers great inducements. A healthy climate, cool, invigorating, ozone laden summer 
breezes, cool evenings and nights, pleasant drives about the city, good society, all the modern improve- 
ments, except street cars, and they are not yet an actual necessity, as the distances between the hotels, 
business places, depot and Opera House are not great. A few miles north of the city lies that beautiful 
inland siieet of water known as Lang Lake. Fifty minutes" drive will take a person from the heart of 
the city to the southerly part of the lake. A person can go to the lake on a bicycle in forty minutes, as 
there are good carriage roads leading to it. The lake is about ten miles long, and from one to two wide. 
The fishing and boating is e<]ual to any lake in Michigan. During the summer season it is a favorite re- 
sort for Al|)ena people, and camping and picnic parties are numerous, and give great pleasure to those who 
attend them. Five miles fi'om the city, in Thunder Bay. is a large island, known as Sulphur Island, and 
is easilv reached from Alpena. .\ day tliere with a picnic party can be very pleasantly passed. At the 
east of North i'oint. and about twehe miles from Alpena, lay, amid tlie clear waters of that majestic in- 
land ocean, Lak(> Huron, a group of pretty islands, the outmost one of which is owned by the United 
States government, and is called Thunder Bay Island. Located on the island is the Thunder Bay Island 
Life-Saving Station and Thunder Bay Lslaiid Lighthouse. A trip to the island on a bright summer day 
makes one of tht^ most pleasant excursions that a pleasure tourist can desire. The life-saving men usu- 
ally inve an exiiilntion of the manner in which thev rescue lives from wrecked vessels, and the exhibition 

14 



will he. greatly eujo^•Pll. A visit to the liglithonse is also well worth the trip across the island. Steamers 
an<l vessels are passing up and down the lake at all times. There are many other interesting places well 
Worth seeing, and the [)leasure tourist cau pass two or three weeks in a delightful manner, combining 
pleasure with recreation. A visit to the great lumber mills will prove an interesting trip, and the visitor 
will be amazed at the wonderful manner that the machinery eats up logs. About one thousand logs 
make a daily meal for the big circulars, gangs and band saws in a mill. A few hundi-ed yards from the 
hotel the visitor can see the method of sorting and rafting logs. In the early part of the season the im- 
mense log piles, ccmtaining many millions of feet of saw logs, can be seen, and will be an object of great 
interest to those who are not familiar with lumbering scene.5. The log piles, or rollways, as they are 
termed, are but little over one mile distant from the business portion of the city. Take a drive up the 
banks of Thunder Bay river, and you will be amazed at the immense amount of logs you see. The river 
for 20 miles is full of logs. 

The city of Alpena contains many objects of interest to visitors, and the visitor need not be a mil- 
lionaire who comes to the city, as charges for rooms and meals are reasonable. Fashion has not yet set 
her high jiriced edict to forbid the visit of persons of moderate means. 

To the invalid, Alpena offers a choice prize in her famed magnetic sul[)hur spring water, but of that 
great healer the next chapter shall tell the truthful history. 




FIRST ST KEET srU'llli; SIM.MXii CO. l^\'l'll IIOL'SE 

ll-'l n l'lli.|iii;l:l|ill li\ Will. r.iHlllnll.i 




In the year IsOU a inimber of Alpena people were possessed with tlie salt fever, and 
a company was organized to drill a well down into the earth for several hundred feet, and 
tap the salt deposit that was believed to be under the city. At a depth of about 900 feet 
a vein of water was struck that was possessed of a strong odor, and had wonderful mag- 
netic qualities. A knife blade held in the water became strongly luagnetized. The 
magnetic vein was regarded more as a curiosity than as of great value, and its wonderful healing power 
on rheumatic diseases was not known. In 1870 persons afflicted with rheumatism were induced to bathe 
in the water that flowed out of the well. The immediate residt was relief from torture that rheumatic 
pei'sons endure. A coiirse of baths for a few weeks completely cured persons of their rheumatic disease. 
The attention of those financially interested in the well was then turned toward making a ])ractical 
use of tlie irreat healinir waters. A bath house was erected, and a fine hotel, the well known Fletcher 
House, was built, furnished and opened to the public. A slight attem[)t was made to advertise the cura- 
tive properties of the mineral waters. Many [leople came to tf)wn. and many sufferers derived great ben- 
efit from bathing in the water. 

Alpena at that time was not in a condition to be made into a health or pleasure resort. She had 
neither railroad communication or good lines of steamboats. Not a foot of the streets had l.ieen ]iaved. 
Tliere were no aniusements or recreations for tourists. The citizens had not much time for leisure. To 
get to Al|)ena or to leave it in the summer season was uncertain, and depended U|)on the weather. In 

17 



fact the enterprise whs at least 12 years too soon, and thus the attendance at the bath house and hotel 
was not large enoni^h to [)ay expenses. In winter season the only manner of commuuieation between Al- 
pena and the nearest railroad, distant loO miles, was by sta^^je, and when roads were bad five days' time 
were re(juired to make the journey. With all these difficulties to eontt^iid against, it is not to be wonder- 
ed at that the enterprise was not a financial success, besides those who furnished the funds to drill and 
])ipp the well, and erect the bath house and hotel, needed their money to carry on the lumber business 
.thev were engaged i)). 

The well was drilled near where the Huron Lumber Co. mill is, on Eiver street, not far from the 
city hall. In a few years the mineral water had destroyed the iron pipe, and the famous well became 
partially filled up with fallen rock. The Fletcher Htmse was closed, and the mineral well and resort be- 
came a piece of history. 

For about 1'2 years following, the people of Alpena kept vigorously at work. The lumber business 
was made a vast one. The agricultural interests of the county were develo])pd. The city was immensely 
improved. Streets were jiaved. A railroad was extended to tlie city. Palace steamers that made their 
calls with the regularity of an ex])ress train, ran to the city. The Fletcher House was replaced by a much 
grander one. the well known ('hurchill. Modern improvements a|)peared, and Alpena became well known 
as one of tlie finest places in Michigan, as a pleasant summer resort. It was accomplished without l)oom- 
iiig oi- advertising, beyond wliat tlie local papers did. and a few pamphlets. The people of Alpena had 
built and improxed the city for tiieir own personal benefit, and they did the work so well that it attracted 
the attention of people from otiier [daces, and who found Alpena a pleasant (uty to ])ass a few weeks in 
during the warm season. 

In the vear INUI energetic business men of the city decideil the time had come to again tap the 

18 " 



healing spriug, flowing luuulreds of feet beneath the city. A company was organized of citizens, and 
shares of stock to the amount of iJSilO.OOO were quickly subscribed. One-half the stock was taken by men 
of moderate means, in one an'd two hundred dollar shares. The balance was si;bscribed by the rich men 
of the city. A fine site was purchased, occupying half a block, with First street in front, and Water and 
Eiver streets on the sides. On the front is a large and beautiful grove of shade trees. On that site was 
erected as pretty, well arranged and elegantly furnished a bath house as can be found in the State. It 
is t'lose to the business center of the city. The steamboat wharves are near by. The depot is but a few 
lilocks distant. In front, across the street, is that elegant hotel, the Churchill, while the (xollinof House, 
a vei-y pleasant hotel, is near by. The l)ath house is open the entire year, and all kinds of baths can be 
obtained. The bath house has parlors, office, reception rooms, warm rooms, and the batJi rooms are large, 
and well lighted. An experienced physician is in charge. The company is known as the Al2:)ena Sulphur 
Spring Co., and to date it has expended on building, sinking and jiiping well and improving and beauti- 
fying the grounds, the sum of §40,000. 

The work of drilling the well commenced on the ;50th of October, 181)1. and on tlie 12th of Febru- 
ary, 1802, the work was completed and salt rock reached. The total depth of the well is 1,207 feet, and 
the time occupied in drilling was 2,025t1 lurars. The well was commenced with a diameter of seven 
inches, and at -ISS feet deep was reduced to five inches and nine-sixteenths. At a depth of U8t) feet the 
diameter of the well w;is reduced to fi^•e inches. The first strong stream of water was found at a depth 
of 480 feet: a second at r.TO feet: a third at -JOO feet; a fourth at 508 feet, and a fifth at 005 feet. The 
flow of water was then so tremendous that other streams struck were not noticed. The water found at 
and above (')05 feet is strongly tinctured with sulphur, but does not contain the magnetic quality. The 
magnetic water is found at a (lei)th of 700 feet. Considerable difficulty was experienced in stationing 

19 



the |)i|K' lit tlif ri^rht [jlace, so as to get the inugnetif water as free as possible t'nmi utlier streams, hut 
after iiiucli cliaugiiig of the pipe it was satisfactorily placed. By means of the iron piping, three differ- 
ent streams of water are obtained from tlie famons well. The first contains the stream above oS8 feet, 
ami is not remarkable for its mineral pro[)erties, and may be termed ordinary drinking water. The sec- 
ond stream is from that part of the well between 588 feet and 7<>0 feet, and is very strongly flavored with 
8ul[)liur. These two streams are not nn])leasant ti> drink. Tiie third is the magnetic stream. The water 
of the second stream rushes out of the pipe with great velocity, and the pressure is equal to that of a fire 
hydrant with fire pressure. 

Prof. W. F. Edwards, of the school of Pharmacy of tlie State University of Michigan, gives the fol- 
lowing analysis of the water: Sodiac carbonate, ().()'283 ; sodic chloride, 4.885 ; magnetic chloride, 1.3417 ; 
sodic sulphide, 0.4812; calcic sulphate, 3.1314; bydric sulphide gas, 0.12t57. 

The price of baths has been placed at reasonable rates. For 1893 the charge is as follows: Plain 
magnetic bath. 50; magnetic bath with attendant. 75 cents: all other baths, $1. 





L()(i I'lI.E AT OX ROW. TITV OF ALl'ENA. 

iKtiMMII l'il(itliKlM|i|l h\ \\lll, I'.iPlllKMI.l 




A1-B1']I!T L'Ai'KS l^l'MliKl! :\1ILL. FLl-rrcii Kli I'AI'Ei; PlLl' I'AfTUifV 

U''''i'iii :i I'linlii^riipli by Win. I'.uiillnii, ' 




The IxniisTi'^iES of ^^pExXa. 

The business of manufacturing pine lumber, lath and shingles has 
been, and is to-day. the c-liief in(histry of Alpena. For years to come 
"" it will continue to be a large and lucrative industry, giving employ- 

JW \ .sum msiit to hundreds of families. It has built up the city; it has been the 
MIW v -^Q chief agency in converting thousands of acres of wilderness into fertile 
i^ farms, and, at present, thousands of [)eople depend upon it for a living. 
Years ago the bulk of the pine timber in the county had been con- 
verted into lumber. Enterprising mill men had secured immense ti-acts 
of pine in the adjoining counties, and for years past hundreds of mil- 
lit)ns of feet of pine logs were lumbered yearly in tlie forests of Presque 
Isle, Montmorency and Alcona counties, and floateil down Thunder Bay 
river and branches, to the Alpena lumber mills. The raili'oad. which extended from Alpena to the back 
part nf .\lcoiia county, lias bmuglit in immense (juantities of pine anil cedar. Millions of feet of logs 
have been rafted from Lake Superior, Georgian Bay and Presque Isle county. 

The inq)ortant (luestion now ai'ises. how long will the ])ine industry last;' The answer is, that it 
will last for manv years to come. Hundr<'ds of millit)ns of feet of pine are yet owned by Alpena lumber- 
men in Presque Isle count\'. and that timber will come to this city by the northern extension of the De- 
troit. Bav Citv ct Alpena railroad. Stn-eral hundred millions of feet of jiine logs are yet to be floated 

2;} 



down Thiiiuler Bay river. In tlio Cleorgitui Bay reojioii Alpena hiinhermen own hundreds and liimdreils 
<)£ millions of feet of ]>ine timber, and during the winter of 1892 8 the first lumbering operations com- 
menced in that region, for getting out logs for the Alpena mills. These logs wull be towed to Thunder 
Bay. boomed at White Fish Point, some three miles distant from the city, and rafted to the mills as they 
are needed. 

Tilt- different ])inrrie.-; mentioned are capable of supplying the mills of Alpena for years to come, 
and thus the people are assured of the continuance of the great pine manufacturing industry, and the 
certainty that many hundreds of men will find employment in the lumber mills. 

Pine constitutes only a portion of the vast forests of Alpena, l)ut for many years after the first set- 
tlement began it was the only timber that had any commercial value. After a few years cedar began to 
become of value, and it has grown into a large and profitalile industry. Ai)out one million pieces were 
got out in the vicinity of Alpena in the year lSi)2, and more will beshi])])ed the present year. In the year 
1887 G. N. Fletcher & St)ns commenced operating their new sulphite paper ]n\\\> factory, and spruce, a 
wood that |)reviouslv had been of no value, became one of the most valuable kinds of timber in the coun- 
tv. It makes the best kind of paper pulp, with an extra strong fibre: and since that year about ."i.UOO 
corils per vear weie sold to the |iulp factory. Last winter the price |)aid, delivered at the factory, was 
S-f per cord. The spool fjictorv was the next new industry operated, and it made valuable birch wood 
that previoush had but little value. The hendock bark extract factory brought into market the large 
amount of hendock timber in the conntv. and the exci'lsior factory provided a profitable use for basswood 
and |)oplar. Last year the stave works wei-e built, and that ci'eated a great market for the elm timber. 
A few years ago all tlie vahie there w;is in maple was for firewood purj)oses, and a large amount of the 
finest birdseve maple was cut into cord wood. Now niajile is known to be valuable for furniture purposes. 

24 



The forests of maple, beech, elm, hemlock, spruce, cedar, tamarack aiul other woods, iu Alpena 
<'Oiinty, are immense, and the adjoining counties are as equally boiiutifully supplied. There is an im- 
mense amount of timber yet to come into market, and it will take the place of ])ine in creating and main- 
taining business. 

Alpena has great advantages to otfer to institutions that use hardwoods, and a better place can not 
be found for the erection of a large furniture manufacturing establishment. There is plenty of raw 
material. It can be readily got to the city, and the shipping facilities, in navigation season, are not sur- 
passed by any city. In the winter the railroad furnishes as good shipping facilities as are possessed by 
many other towns. 

There need be no doubt in regard to the bright future of Alpena. Nature has dealt out its choice 
gifts with a generous hand. 





iKN ri{Al. SCIIOOl, SKCON'I) S'l'l.'KKT. 

iKiiMii:! I'hiiiii.;!:, .1, l,j Wm, l,i nliyii, > 



^xRICUlrTURE AND 4{0RTIGIILTURE. 




Less thax tliirty jeiirs ago Alpena was but a wilderness. The inhabitants 
numbered but a few hundred, and not one of them could be classed as a real resi- 
dent. Their sole object was to cut as quickly as possible the pine into lumber, catch 
what fish there were, and then leave for some other part of the counti-y. Everything 
^^ consumed as food was imported from other places, except fish and wild berries. A 
^^ ]ierson who talked about growing farm and garden products in Alpena county, ex- 
p^ posed himself to ridicule. The general belief was that agricultural products could 
not be raised in the county. 

About the year 18()4 some of the residents determined to test the question. 
Garden seeds and potatoes were jilanted, and the result was a genuine surprise to the people of the little 
town. The vegetables grown proved to be equal to any grown in the State of Michigan, and the fact was 
made clear that Alpena county was in the finest potato and vegetable section of the country, and, to-day, 
this region is celebrated for the superior excellence of the potatoes, cabbage, celei'y, beets, tomatoes, tur- 
ni|)s. cauliflower, onions, lettuce, and all other kinds of vegetables commcm to the temperate zone. 

The success that attended the efforts at raising vegetables caused some citizens to test the soil and 
climate and see what it could do toward growing fruit. Apple, plum and cherry trees were planted. A 
few years' time were required to allow the young trees to attain a fruit-growing age. and then another 
prophecy of the early settler was proved false, and it was shown that Al|)ena county had no superior as a 

27 



place where apples, ])luins hihI clierries could be grown in great abundance, and of a superior quality. 
Strawberries are a native crop, growing wild in great abundance, but the gardener soon siirplanted them 
with choic-e cultivated plants. 

For fifteen successive years the Al[)ena County Agricultural Society has held an exhibition, and 
every one has fully demon.strated. by the magnificent exhil)its, that no better vegetables can be grown in 
the United States than can. and have been for years, be ])roduced in the gardens of Alpena county. 

The fruit orchards are yet young, but the last few years the production of aj)ples and plums has 
been large, and has reduced to a considerable extent the impoiis of such fruits. In the fall of 18!t2 the 
fine quality of the crab apples exhibited at the county fair attracted the attention of (mtsiders, and re- 
sulted in several hundred bushels being exported to other cities. 

Plums have proved to be a crop tiiat pays good interest on the money and time invested. One or- 
chard, in 1892, brought its owner over one hundred dollars per acre, and several hundred bushels of the 
luscious fruit were exported to Detroit. The attention of citizens interested in the agricidtural growth 
of Alpena connty has been attracted for some years to the growth of ])liims. Hundreds of trees have 
been ])lanted and are beginning to return a rich reward. So thoroughly have many of the citizens been 
ccnivinced in regard to tlie profitableness of pluin culture thiit arrangements were made in 1892 for hav- 
ing 20.(H)() pluni t7'ees sliipped to Al|)ena in lMt;5. to be planted at various parts of the county. In a few 
years .\l[)eiia will su|)|ily the niaikets of many cities of the State with ])lums. In a few years more the 
crop of apples will more than supply the home market, and hundreds of bushels will be exported to the 
ui)])er j)eninsula of Micliigan. The wild fruit crop is al.so a very valuable one. It consists of huckle- 
berries, cranberries, l)lackberries and i-aspberries. Every season thousands of bushels of such wild fruit 
are ex|)oi'ted t<.) Detroit, and find n readv sale. 

28 



The experience of the last twenty years has proved that the soil of Alpena will produce as much 
grain to the acre as will any other part of Michigan. The standard and unfailing crops of farm produce 
grown are wheat, oats, barley, buckwheat, rye, garden corn, timothy, clover and peas. The soil is fertile, 
and the climate is all that can be desired for the growth of .such products. 




^'PEXA'S J^ITURE. 




In the foregoing chapters have been i-elated some of Alpena's ad- 
vantages, showing her historj', what her citizens have done in the past, 
what they are doing to-day, what her resources are, and the bright fu- 
ture there is in stoi'e for her. 

Nature has done much for Alpena. She has Ijeen given the be.st 






^^-^^S^^^^^'l^^iS harbor on the Great Lakes; her climate is an healthy one; the soil is 



\"'-.;n*^S^S^^:g'i;^^-3%^rr- fruitful, and responds to the labors of the agriculturist with generous 
crops ; immen.se forests of hardwood and other timber yet await the ax of the woodsman : the stone quar- 
ries are inexhaustible; the finest mineral spring in the wiuld is right in the heart of the city, encased in 
one of the most handsone and conveniently arranged bath houses in the country : nearly all the modern 
improvements are found in the city: the schools are equal to the best in the land : the finest palace 
steamers on t-he lakes land at her wharves; the mail, the i-ailroad, the telephone, gas and electric light 
are at the call of hei- children: she is the metro[»oli-i of northern Michigan, without a rival, and the ener- 
gy of her sons and daughters will m-uut-iin her in lii-i- pre-iant [iroud position. 

There is one thing mcire to be imted. because it possesses a gift to the future of inestimable value. 
It is her admir.ible water jiower [U-ivileges. The great moti^■e power of the future is electi'icity. Steam, 
as the ruling king, is so(m to be deposed, and its place taken by the yotmg giant, electricity. To gene- 
rate the electrical power chea[)lv, it is necessary that water power be obtaintMl. That portimi of the 

" 31 



country tliat possesses good water ])o\ver will l)ei'oiue a gieat manufafturing feuter. The necessity of 
coal to makt! steam will no longer exist. AVater will be confined with dams, and liberated as needed to 
create the electrical power, vvhicli can be transmitted for miles t)ver a slender wire, and made to turn the 
wheels of mechanical industry. 

This vast natural advantage Aljiena has in abundance, and right adjacent to the city. The raj)itls 
in Thunder Bay river, oidy one mile from the moutli. have already been harnessed and made to work for 
man's benefit. A few miles further u|> the river is another ra|)ids that can be used to store the giant 
power. About seven miles from the city the river has already a second dam. This water power of 
Thunder Bay river, even as it now is, ccmld supply electrical power sufiieient to di-ive all the mills now in 
Alpena, and leave an abundance of power for other purposes. The time is coming when this great agent 
will be harnessed and made to drive the mills and factories of Alpena. 

With all these great advantages, why should any sane person doubt the future prosperity of Alpena? 
Are men fools that they will cast aside the jewels that nature has bo bountifully beshiwed, and run after 
will (T the wisi^'? Not the slightest danger exists that the energetic scms and daughters of Alj)ena will do 
such an insane act. They will continue on the path of prosperity, blazed out by their fathers, and when 
they resign in favor of their children, will leave an Alpena as much greater and better than it is now, as 
Alpena of to-day exceeds the Alpena of thirty years age). 



■ * ■ - • -- 


1 


*^^i^^tf fi fffiliiifemrfi 


>^..^^i^ii^ 


Wr^- 


"^^^^E?-l 




\ 


M' H -m 't 


P»^^ UMUUUI 


. -1 


MUfflrv'i 


fe R . 


> -^ ';**^fJJ^ ■'' * 


^^^^^HM£:^r lyjl j^ji^ 




.--ss^— .;^ 


^^r^"'- 


TTT'IM 




' i^^^mmm 


^BK^^SmK^'""'"""''''^^^^^''^'''"jA 








^^v 


SIf^^***"''^^^^ it 


l^^^^^tfMI^^^ * 






^^^^ • 



ALPENA THIKIY YEARS AGO. 



Riy t»* 












V 

-^--o^ 









A 



.«^^ 












•^►^ ^^ 



^°-^^ '.^ 












.*^ 






o V 



'o . . • 'V <■ 

b _A^ c " " " ^ <* 

o 



^^'""-^ \^^*° .^^'\ ^y^w.' -^^ 









< o. 









v..'^'* 









-^U-n^ 







1^%^ 






o V 












.^ 






r- Augustine' c°V«, ^^ n^ .•''*- o. 4* «°^°* '^-o 



008BS BROS 

.IBRABV BlNDiKc 

A. 












°o 






iOT^ 




4 o 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



I i'l lillllli 'ill Hi i.i 11 iii !>' » 
016 097 647 0« 



